I am currently living in Brazil and have been teaching ESL for the past 3 years. My wife and I have been thinking of moving back to the states and I have no idea what the ESL market is like there.

In Brazil I have taught privately the entire time I have been here (ranging from beginners to advanced conversation classes). Because I have been teaching privately I have little to show resume-wise. Furthermore, I have no degree or teaching certification.

If we decide to go ahead and move back (I am an American) what sort of things should I be thinking about doing to prepare myself professionally?

-Certification vs 4 year degree vs just teaching privately there.-

Here my qualification is basically that I am a Native Speaker, but I realize that in the states I would be one of many. Also, language schools tend to not pay as well here compared to the rates private teachers charge. Here I really enjoy the freedom of teaching privately and making my own lessons and catering them towards the needs of my students but I have no idea if that would even be a possibility there.

Also, what can one expect to make teaching? We are thinking San Francisco area but haven't nailed down a particular place for certain.

If we decide to go ahead and move back (I am an American) what sort of things should I be thinking about doing to prepare myself professionally?

-Certification vs 4 year degree vs just teaching privately there.-

Here my qualification is basically that I am a Native Speaker, but I realize that in the states I would be one of many. Also, language schools tend to not pay as well here compared to the rates private teachers charge. Here I really enjoy the freedom of teaching privately and making my own lessons and catering them towards the needs of my students but I have no idea if that would even be a possibility there.

Also, what can one expect to make teaching? We are thinking San Francisco area but haven't nailed down a particular place for certain.

You won't find much of a demand for private lessons (those provided by a private individual vs. a language school) in the US. Moreover, your lack of a degree and TEFL cert puts you at a huge disadvantage for even entry-level teaching jobs because your competition will be BA and MA holders. If you do an Internet search on esl jobs san francisco, you'll get an idea of what qualifications employers are looking for and how much they're paying, . Anyway, if you plan to continue in TESOL whether in the US or abroad, you'll need a degree and very likely a TEFL cert as well.

Thanks for the reply. This was pretty much what I had expected in regards to the US. As I mentioned, in Brazil it hasn't been problematic so I had (erroneously) hoped that possibly the same would be true in the states.

This was pretty much what I had expected in regards to the US. As I mentioned, in Brazil it hasn't been problematic so I had (erroneously) hoped that possibly the same would be true in the states.

It certainly isn't the same since you're presently teaching in a non-English speaking country vs. the demand for TESL in the US. Also, be aware that the pool of TEFL/TESL jobs worldwide is shrinking for those teachers who lack a degree.